Apparatus for use in dyeing textile materials

ABSTRACT

A dye beam of adjustable width comprises a hollow shaft having perforations in its centre portion to permit the passage of treatment liquor, two endplates on the shaft, one or both of which may be movable, and a telescopic outer framework cooperating with the endplates for supporting a textile fabric, the width of the outer framework being adjustable by movement of the endplates. The framework is preferably made up of overlapping groups of circumferentially spaced perforated U-section elements mounted on the hollow shaft and movable relative to one another with the endplates in the general axial direction of the shaft.

United States Patent 1191 1111 3,871,195 Gibson Mar. 18, 1975 1 1 APPARATUS FOR USE IN DYEING 3,304,626 2/1967 Leckner 34/115 TEXTILE MATERIALS 3,616,664 11/1971 Libbrecht 68/198 X [75] Inventor: James Donald MacKay Gibson, FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPUCATIONS Ilkley, England 351,594 7/1931 United Kingdom 68/198 [73] Assignee: i gompany Limited Primary ExaminerRobert L. Bleutge on ng an Assistant ExaminerPhilip R. Coe [22] Filed: Apr. 18, 1973 Attorney, Agent, or FirmHarold L. Stowell [21] Appl. No.: 352,444 57 ABSTRACT A dye beam of adjustable width comprises a hollow 1 Forelgn Application Priority Data shaft having perforations in its centre portion to per- Apr. 18, 1972 United Kingdom 17922/72 mit the passage of treatment liquor, two endplates on the shaft, one or both of which may be movable, and [52] US. Cl. 68/198 a telescopic outer framework cooperating with the [51] Int. Cl. B65h 75/20, B05c 8/02 ndplat s r supp t ng a textile a the width of [58] Field of Search 68/150, 189, 198; 34/115, the outer framework being adjustable by movement of 34/122, 153; 134/153, 159 the endplates. The framework is preferably made up of overlapping groups of circumferentially spaced per- [56] References Cited forated U-section elements mounted on the hollow UNITED STATES PATENTS shaft and movable relative to one another with the 1,374,543 4/1921 Ashworth 68/198 endplates m the genera] am] d Ofthe Shaft' 2,252,181 8/1941 Hunter et a1 34/122 4 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure FATEHTED 1 8|975 APPARATUS FOR USE IN DYEING TEXTILE MATERIALS The present invention relates to an improved beam for use in the wet treatment of textile fabrics. The beam may be employed with advantage for washing off fabrics previously impregnated with dye, but can also be used for beam dyeing as such.

It is known to dye textile fabrics by winding them onto a perforated beam and passing liquor under pressure into the beam and subsequently through the fabric. This method is not readily adaptable to the dyeing of fabrics of differing widths, as it is desirable to be able to do in normal commercial operation. For example, when the fabric to be dyed is narrower than the beam it is necessary to prevent the escape of dye liquor through those portions of the beam not covered by the fabric. Various methods have been proposed for blocking off these uncovered perforations but so far none of these has been entirely satisfactory. It has also been difficult to seal off the edges of the fabric effectively. In beam dyeing the flow of dye liquor is generally in a radial direction, but near the edges of the fabric the dye flow has a component of velocity in the axial direction of the beam because it escapes at the edges of the fabric. The edges of the fabric are therefore often unevenly dyed and have to be discarded.

The present invention provides a dye beam of adjustable width comprising a hollow shaft having perforations in its centre portion to permit the passage of treatment liquor, two endplates on the shaft, one or both of which may be movable, and a telescopic outer framework cooperating with the endplates for supporting a textile fabric, the width of the outer framework being adjustable by movement of the endplates.

The materials which may be treated, e.g. washed off or dyed on the present beam include woven fabrics, non-woven fabrics and single and double jersey knitted fabrics of sufficient porosity in the wet state to allow ready penetration of the liquor into the fabric. The fabrics may be of wool, acrylic fibres, polyamide fibres, polyester fibres or cellulosic fibres or blends of these fibres. Dyes which can be used include acid levelling, acid milling, 1:1 premetallised, 1:2 premetallised, fibre reactive, direct cotton or vat dyes and such dyes can be applied using conventional dye liquors for use in beam dyeing.

The apparatus of the invention is of especial interest for washing off an already dyed or dye-impregnated fabric, e.g. a fabric which has been dyed with a reactive dye by the method of British Patent Specification No.42089/68 (Ser. No. 1,275,739). The apparatus may also be used for other textile treatments, e.g. the curing of shrink-resist resins. The invention will be further de scribed by means of one example of a beam for a beam dyeing machine according to the invention, which is shown in diagrammatic, partially sectioned view in the accompanying drawing.

The apparatus as shown in the drawing comprises a hollow shaft or tube 1 closed at one end 2 and having perforations 3 in its centre portion. Two moveable endplates 4 and 4a are provided and are slidable on unperforated portions 5 and 5a of the shaft 1. Between the endplates 4 and 4a is provided a cylindrical outer framework 6 arranged circumferentially about the shaft in the form of a plurality of metal elements 7 extending parallel to the shaft axis, each of generally U- section with the open end of the U facing radially outwardly and each provided throughout their length with a large number of perforations 8 in the deepest part or web of the U. The outer framework is of smaller diameter than the endplates, and is adapted to receive a winding of textile fabric (not shown). The framework consists of two outer sections 9 and 9a, which are movable, and a central fixed portion 10. The inner ends of the elements 7 forming the sections 9,9a are staggered with respect to the elements forming the centre section 10 and overlap therewith so that each of theend sections 9,9a can cooperate telescopically with the centre section 10. The elements forming the slidable outer sections 9 and 9a are mounted between the endplates 4 and 4a and supports 11 and 11a which are slidable on the shaft. On movement of the endplates 4 and 4a the whole outer sections 9 and including the supports 11 and 11a move as a whole.

The centre section 10 is mounted on supports 12 which are rigidly fixed to the shaft or tube 1, and there is additionally provided a centre bulkhead 13. The movable supports 11 and 11a can move to any position between the supports 12 and bulkhead 13 so that these supports additionally act as stops and limit the travel of the endplates 4 and 4a. Because of the positioning of the supports 12 it can be seen by reference to the drawing that the endplates 4 and 40 cannot leave exposed any of the perforations 3 in the shaft 1.

Each of the endplates 4 and 4a is provided with a releasable clamp by means of which the endplates can be secured when the beam is adjusted to the desired width. In the embodiment shown there are provided at each end a threaded clamping ring 14 which when tightened bears on an internally conical member 15 which in turn urges a compressible conical sleeve 16, formed on the end plate, against the shaft 1. Rubber sealing rings 17 are provided on each endplate to prevent the escape of wash or dye liquor between the end plates and the shaft The beam is intended for use in a conventional beam dyeing apparatus. It is normally held in two bearings (not shown) which can be placed in a tank or pressure vessel. A motor drive is normally provided for the shaft 1, whereby it can be rotated, and a pump is provided for urging the treatment liquor up the hollow centre of the shaft. The tank or pressure vessel is provided with an outlet for liquor.

In use, the clamping rings 14 are slackened and the beam is adjusted to the width of the fabric to be treated and fixed at that width by tightening the rings 14. An inner lapping of rope and a second lapping of about l0 layers of porous bleached cotton cloth are then would over the outer framework 6 and the cloth to be treated is wound over this second lapping until it nearly reaches the diameter of the endplates 4 and 4a. A further lapping of about 10 layers of bleached cotton cloth can if necessary be wound over the fabric to give an outer lapping layer. The presence of these lappings helps to prevent uneven treatment, which is especially noticeable in dyeing.

The washing, dyeing or other treatment can be carried out in any conventional manner employed for beam dyeing. The treatment liquor emerges from the perforations 3 and fills the space between the shaft 1 and the outer framework 6 and, because of the perforations in the metal elements 7, it can also enter the cavities between the elements and the winding of the textile material. The liquor can pass freely throughout the cylindrical space between the endplates 4 and 4a and the space becomes filled with liquor. The action of the pump then forces the liquor through the fabric to be treated. Because the endplates 4 and 4a can be brought up tightly abutting the edges of the fabric winding, the escape of liquor at the edges of the fabric is minimised, so that the flow or liquor is approximately radial throughout the fabric width, and uneven treatment at the edges of the fabric is reduced.

It will be apparent that the endplates 4 and 4a should be mounted on the shaft 1 in such a manner that a liquidand pressure-tight seal is maintained between the respective plates and the shaft at all positions of adjustment, for example by use of O-rings 17 described above.

I claim:

1. A dye beam of adjustable width comprising:

a hollow shaft formed with perforations in its centre portion to permit the passage of treatment liquor therethrough;

two end plates mounted in spaced relationship on said shaft, at least one of said end plates being movable along said shaft; and

a telescopic framework mounted in parallel spaced relation to the said shaft and cooperating with the end plates for supporting a textile fabric, the width of the framework being adjustable by movement of the at least one of said end plates, wherein the framework comprises a plurality of elements of generally U-shaped section extending parallel to the axis of the hollow shaft and supported thereon, the U-section elements being disposed in at least two groups displaced from one another in the said axial direction, the elements of each group being substantially uniformly spaced around the hollow shaft and having the open end of their U-section facing radially outwards.

2. The dye beam as defined in claim 1 wherein each of the end plates is movable along said shaft and the width of the framework is adjustable by movement of the end plates.

3. The dye beam defined in claim 1 wherein said elements of generally U-shaped section are perforated along their length to permit the passage of treatment liquor therethrough.

4. The dye beam as defined in claim 3 wherein the perforations in the said hollow shaft are only within the telescopic limits of said at least one of said end plates. l 

1. A dye beam of adjustable width comprising: a hollow shaft formed with perforations in its centre portion to permit the passage of treatment liquor therethrough; two end plates mounted in spaced relationship on said shaft, at least one of said end plates being movable along said shaft; and a telescopic framework mounted in parallel spaced relation to the said shaft and cooperating with the end plates for supporting a textile fabric, the width of the framework being adjustable by movement of the at least one of said end plates, wherein the framework comprises a plurality of elements of generally U-shaped section extending parallel to the axis of the hollow shaft and supported thereon, the U-section elements being disposed in at least two groups displaced from one another in the said axial direction, the elements of each group being substantially uniformly spaced around the hollow shaft and having the open end of their U-section facing radially outwards.
 2. The dye beam as defined in claim 1 wherein each of the end plates is movable along said shaft and the width of the framework is adjustable by movement of the end plates.
 3. The dye beam defined in claim 1 wherein said elements of generally U-shaped section are perforated along their length to permit the passage of treatment liquor therethrough.
 4. The dye beam as defined in claim 3 wherein the perforations in the said hollow shaft are only within the telescopic limits of said at least one of said end plates. 